PRESIDENT Christofias advised that the EU should be very careful in dealing with Syria at last week’s EU summit according to reports from Brussels. Reports published in two of yesterday’s papers claimed Christofias told fellow leaders that the EU should be very careful when interfering in matters related to the countries of the ‘Arab spring’ and especially Syria, so as not to create the impression that it was policing the region.
There was always the danger, he was quoted as saying, that this would lead to undesirable situations such as a turn towards fundamentalism by Arab regimes. President Sarkozy reportedly put Christofias in his place, saying that EU had an obligation to act pre-emptively in the region and particularly in Syria which was run by an undemocratic regime that had caused so much bloodshed. The EU could not ignore what was happening and fail to defend the rights of innocent citizens, Sarkozy was quoted as saying.
Christofias was obliged to agree, saying that he was ‘appalled’ by the crimes committed by the regime. The Cyprus government however, has avoided taking a clear, public stand against the murderous Assad regime which was responsible, according to most estimates, for 10,000 deaths in its attempt to quash the year-long uprising.
On the contrary, the Cyprus government has helped the Assad regime, by ignoring EU sanctions and allowing the Russian-owned ship, The Chariot, which docked in Limassol port, to sail on to Syria with its cargo of ammunition and explosives. Not only did the Cyprus authorities avoid inspecting the cargo, but they unquestioningly accepted assurances that the ship would sail to Turkey rather than Syria.
It was an indefensible decision by a government which is constantly pontificating about the need for states to base their decisions on principles. What principles was the Christofias government upholding in allowing the ship carrying ammunition to sail to Syria, not to mention the fact it showed utter contempt for EU sanctions? The decision was aimed at pleasing Russia, the steadfast supporter of the Assad regime and supplier of the ammunition. And Cyprus under Christofias has always kow-towed to Moscow, even if this meant going against the wishes of the EU.
Given his government’s stand on Syria, Christofias should have refrained from issuing advice to the EU summit, because he is not an honest broker. By advising the EU against interfering in Syria, he was once again taking a line that would have been applauded by Moscow. It would have been preferable if he had kept quiet rather than remind his fellow leaders, that he was a supporter of Russia’s pro-Assad stance.
